The Pointy End

The first and most common question Natalie gets asked is "So, have you ever gotten stung?" Getting a bee sting is part and parcel of the life of a beekeeper. If you are careful and wear your bee suit all the time, you can minimize the risk, but it still happens. Beekeepers who have been doing this longer go without gloves, suit and sometimes even a mask. …We are not that brave yet.

Bees have jobs within the hive depending on their age. Some bee's job is to take care of the brood, the baby bees. While, another bees job is to collect nectar, while another bee might be making wax. The bees you have to worry about are the guard bees. It is the job of those bees to protect the hive. Those are the bees who are willing to lay down their lives (a bee dies after stinging you) to protect the hive from the large white invader.

But, the guard bees are only within the hive. A bee who is foraging flowers and accidentally lands on your arm is not intending to hurt you. In this case, the most important thing you can learn to do is also the most difficult. If a bee lands on you, do nothing. Wait. Usually the bee will fly on. That bee isn't protecting their home, that isn't its job.

For the beekeeper though there is a silver lining to getting a few stings. Bee sting local reactions, the swelling and itch you experience when getting stung, diminishes with repetition. A beekeeper, after twenty stings in a season usually won't swell up or react. After the initial pain, the sting is behind you. Its getting through those first nineteen that is the trick!

Thank you to all the backers that have almost seen this project through to the end. Less than 48 hours now! Keep spreading the word. Sharing on Facebook. Posting it on Twitter and Tumbr. We like to tell our story to as many people as we can!